Spencer Fox ’11
Staff Writer
Imagine you’re ruffling through your parents’ closet, and past all of the Neil Diamond records, sweatpants, and other things you wish you never saw, you find an old cassette tape from the ’80s.
As you press play on the tape player, that you obviously own, you are bombarded by a barrage of warped lo–fi swells and glistening glittering synth loops, all weaving in and out of tune due to the aged and now warped tape. This is sort of what chill wave sounds like.
Chill wave, or glo–fi, is a new genre that has emerged over the past couple of months in the music scene. As previously stated, it takes the retro appeal of ’80s synth pop, and infuses it with modern day processing and effects. Such artists as, Neon Indian, Washed Out, and Memory Tapes emerged this summer as chill wave’s first batch of standout artists. Toro Y Moi seemingly separated himself from this first heat of bands by releasing his LP Causers of This six months after this emergence.
Toro Y Moi is Chazwick Bundick’s on-stage moniker. This South Carolina native was also a founding member of established college indie band, The Heist and the Accomplice.
With The Heist and the Accomplice being more folk-oriented, and Toro Y Moi’s previously released singles being aimed more towards the garage or surf rock side of things, it’s clear Bundick has some commitment issues.
Even though Bundick has managed to stick to one genre long enough to record an LP, his tendency of not being tied down by one musical category shines through in “Causers of This.” Ranging from electro pop to bossa nova to hip–hop, “Causers” proves just how fearless Toro Y Moi can be.
The album starts off strong with the first two songs, “Blessa” and “Minors.” These two songs showcase his strong pop mentality. They are infectiously catchy, but the real claim to fame of these two tracks are how they meld into each other. Just as the cascading guitar riffs and pulsating synth kicks in at the end of “Blessa,” the overwhelming hook of “Minors” hits you right in the shin, not leaving much time to get a Band–Aid.
After these two songs, you get to see Toro’s more experimental side. The catchiness of the first two songs are maintained, but wrapped in much different packaging. “Imprint After” is the product of falsetto hooks, piano loops, and thick drums. Then the song “Lissoms” begins to blossom right where Imprint left off, beginning with whirring harmonies, a driving lo–fi drum beat takes the song off into a groovy journey throughout the solar system that is Toro Y Moi.
The second half on the album spends less thought on its appeal as far as melody and catchiness is considered, and focuses more on texture, and the blending and melding of different sounds.
While this is truly a valiant and ambitious move for a first LP, it’s not executed as well as one would hope. The song “You Hid,” is one of the slower more subdued songs on the album, and it just doesn’t hold up to the other more intense, or dancey songs. It just feels bland and boring, and doesn’t hold much attention.
When Toro Y Moi doesn’t put stress on the complexity of his instrumentation and relies more on his vocal work than anything (much like the tracks “You Hid” and “Causers of This), it leaves listeners wanting a lot more than they are receiving.
At the end of the day, this record, while it shows Toro Y Moi’s ability to duck and weave between the borders of genre, also expresses his inability to keep consistency within this feat. “Causers of This” has its high points, but it’s dragged down by it’s lack of cohesive material throughout the LP.
